The present invention relates to instruments and methods for performing tissue retraction for surgeries using minimally invasive procedures.
Traditional surgical procedures for pathologies located within the body can cause significant trauma to the intervening tissues. These procedures often require a long incision, extensive muscle stripping, prolonged retraction of tissues, denervation and devascularization of tissue. These procedures can require operating room time of several hours and several weeks of post-operative recovery time due to the destruction of tissue during the surgical procedure. In some cases, these invasive procedures lead to permanent scarring and pain that can be more severe than the pain leading to the surgical intervention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,792,044 issued to Kevin T. Foley et al. provides rather extensive background information pertaining to percutaneous surgery. FIGS. 10a through 10i of that patent depict, and column 10 at lines 11 and following of the patent describe, steps of a method for access to a surgical site in the spine. As described, it begins with the insertion of a guide wire followed by a series of successfully larger dilators installed in sequence to dilate the soft tissues. Then, following installation of the largest dilator deemed necessary, a cannula (retractor) is advanced over the largest dilator for providing a working channel from the skin of the patient to working space adjacent the spine. The retractor can be secured in place by any of the many suitable means known in the art, several of which are mentioned in the patent. It is desirable to be able to use the working channel provided by the retractor, for surgical tools, for viewing devices and for inserting and manipulating fixation elements to the maximum extent possible for desired placement and fixation. Some such items or combinations of items dictate the inside diameter needed in the retractor.
It is sometimes desirable to have working space at the spine extending a greater distance axially of the spine than transversely. However, to provide such access through the typical circular retractors using the above-mentioned dilation techniques, could require a diameter so great as to cause significant trauma to the intervening tissues during placement of the dilators and the tubular retractor.
The development of minimally invasive percutaneous procedures has yielded a major improvement in reducing recovery time and post-operative pain because minimal dissection of tissue (such as muscle tissue, for example) is required. Minimally invasive surgical techniques are desirable for spinal and neurosurgical applications because of the need for access to locations within the body, and the danger of damage to vital intervening tissues. While developments in minimally invasive surgery are steps in the right direction, there remains a need for further development in minimally invasive surgical instruments and methods.